Background checks for guns save lives

Pamela Canyonrivers Marshall (“What happens now with gun background checks,” My View, March 26) has it right — criminal background checks for all gun sales save lives. Even though New Mexico prides itself as being tough on crime, it is often more like Breaking Bad; we seem to expend more energy chasing after symptoms rather than addressing root causes of problems.

Criminal background checks on all gun sales addresses a root cause of the gun violence epidemic by stopping many felons, domestic abusers and those with dangerous mental illnesses from getting a gun.

Yet, while killing this lifesaving piece of legislation, certain state representatives once again introduced ineffective “tough on crime” bills. One was a bill to reinstate capital punishment (an ineffective deterrent); another was a bill that makes assault of a police officer a hate crime (watering down the meaning and effectiveness of current hate crimes legislation). These so-called “tough on crime” bills augment punitive measures for crimes committed rather than addressing symptoms and preventing them in the first place.

The current trend is to reduce penalties on many types of crime because long prison sentences and excessive fines have proven to be ineffective. Furthermore, long sentences cost us all monetarily (taxes) and weaken the social fabric.

Like Marshall, I too was present for the House judiciary committee hearing when the background check bill for gun sales was tabled by six Republicans and one Democrat. I can only describe the experience as “theater of the absurd.”

It is time for all New Mexicans who wish to prevent gun violence to work even harder to make sure legislation that addresses the root problems affecting public safety and health will never again be stifled by special interest groups, willfully ignorant sheriffs or legislators. We clearly know who they are.